Petition against Shell oil drilling in Alaska
Given both the technical difficulty to drill in the Chukchi Sea without harming rig workers or the abundant marine life in the area and Shell's failure to demonstrate that it can safely extract oil from the area, Shell oil company should not be allow
The Interior Department recently gave a conditional approval of Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc.'s plan to begin drilling in the Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska this summer. In the interest of both worker safety and environmental protection, the Interior Department should strongly consider refusing to give the final permits to Shell that are necessary for drilling to occur. Following are four contentions explaining why Shell should not be permitted to drill in Alaska.
1. The Chukchi Sea is remote, turbulent, and if an accident was to occur, Shell would not be prepared to make an immediate response, which could lead to worker deaths and environmental damage.
Quoted from the New York Times, "Both industry and environmental groups say that the Chukchi Sea is one of the most dangerous places in the world to drill. The area is extremely remote...which makes it difficult for clean-up and rescue workers to get to the site in case of an accident."
2. Shell has not shown itself to be capable of drilling in the Arctic Sea region safely in recent years. A 2013 report by the Interior Department deemed Shell to be incapable of performing basic operational and safety procedures, which culminated in two of its oil rigs running aground.
3.Preserving the Chukchi Sea is crucial for the survival of many marine mammals, who need the area for migration and feeding. An accident could potentially have disastrous effects on already endangered marine mammals. Even if Shell avoided an accident and used proper drilling procedures, chemicals released from the ground into the water could still affect marine life.
4. While low gas prices caused by an abundance of US produced fuel may be beneficial to the economy and to personal lives, people are more likely to consider using cheaper, more sustainable modes of transportation such as fuel-conserving/electric cars, public transportation, and bicycles if gas prices are higher. Essentially, the less fuel available at a given time, the less carbon released into the atmosphere.
Additionally, the Natural Resources Defense Council reported that "projections from the Energy Information Administration indicate that an expansion of offshore drilling wouldn't lower gas prices until 2030, and then by only a few cents per gallon. With only two percent of the world's reserves, the U.S. contribution to the global market could never be high enough to significantly alter world oil prices." This suggests that the supposed economic benefit of drilling may be irrelevant altogether.
1. The Chukchi Sea is remote, turbulent, and if an accident was to occur, Shell would not be prepared to make an immediate response, which could lead to worker deaths and environmental damage.
Quoted from the New York Times, "Both industry and environmental groups say that the Chukchi Sea is one of the most dangerous places in the world to drill. The area is extremely remote...which makes it difficult for clean-up and rescue workers to get to the site in case of an accident."
2. Shell has not shown itself to be capable of drilling in the Arctic Sea region safely in recent years. A 2013 report by the Interior Department deemed Shell to be incapable of performing basic operational and safety procedures, which culminated in two of its oil rigs running aground.
3.Preserving the Chukchi Sea is crucial for the survival of many marine mammals, who need the area for migration and feeding. An accident could potentially have disastrous effects on already endangered marine mammals. Even if Shell avoided an accident and used proper drilling procedures, chemicals released from the ground into the water could still affect marine life.
4. While low gas prices caused by an abundance of US produced fuel may be beneficial to the economy and to personal lives, people are more likely to consider using cheaper, more sustainable modes of transportation such as fuel-conserving/electric cars, public transportation, and bicycles if gas prices are higher. Essentially, the less fuel available at a given time, the less carbon released into the atmosphere.
Additionally, the Natural Resources Defense Council reported that "projections from the Energy Information Administration indicate that an expansion of offshore drilling wouldn't lower gas prices until 2030, and then by only a few cents per gallon. With only two percent of the world's reserves, the U.S. contribution to the global market could never be high enough to significantly alter world oil prices." This suggests that the supposed economic benefit of drilling may be irrelevant altogether.
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